MPS board honors award recipients, Carpenter school

Positive recognition and a warning on charter school legislation were the main themes of the Midland Public Schools Board of Education at its Monday night meeting.

The recipients of the 2011 Distinguished Service Awards were named: Mary Chilton, assessment specialist and office professional for mathematics and social studies; Denise Helling, who staffs career centers at both Midland High School and H.H. Dow High School; Norman Retzloff, building manager at Adams Elementary School; and Patti Wolters, office paraprofessional in the Midland High Special Education Department.

MPS Superintendent Carl Ellinger said the awards, which were presented recently, recognize non-certified support personnel and are funded by the Rollin M. Gerstacker Foundation.

The board on Monday also passed a resolution recognizing the “Beating the Odds” honor recently given to Carpenter Street Elementary School.

Ellinger also said Northeast Middle School 6th grade teacher Robin Bott and Plymouth Elementary School Principal Bridget Hockemeyer both received Gerstacker Fellowships, also funded by the Gerstacker Foundation. As part of the fellowship, both will participate in a trip to Asia in June, Ellinger said.

The superintendent and some board members also spoke about legislation being considered this week by the Michigan House Education Committee that would remove the cap on the number of charter schools in the state.

Ellinger said the legislation that is being considered, SB 618, would provide “less accountability” and “less oversight” than charter schools currently experience. He also raised the possibility that the bill, which already has passed the Senate, could mean out-of-state, for-profit companies coming in to open charter schools.

“There is no proof that charter schools outperform public schools,” he said.

Board President Ken Mault and Trustee John Kaminski urged local residents to contact their legislators in opposition to the legislation.

As part of its consent agenda, the board passed “major change proposals” for the 2012-13 school year that were presented by Associate Superintendent Kathy Ellison at the board’s Oct. 24 meeting. These include extending an AP Computer Science course from its current one semester to a full year; changing the name of “Business Math” to “Financial Math”; deleting the Cosmetology course, as the Midland County Educational Service Agency is no longer offering it; and adding a Social Studies course called “Student Leadership.